By Brad Snyder The Undercard
Photos: Bob Ryder

By Fightnews.com

Friday evening the weather outside was frightful in Detroit, but not as scary as Mohamed Adam’s potential in the Lightweight division. A loud crowd of 1700 witnessed Adam taking on a very worthy opponent in Hakeem Watkins. Hailing from Columbus, Ohio, Watkins entered the fight with 5 wins, all coming by way of knockouts. The first round between Adam and Watkins had both fighters getting each other’s attention with strong punches.

In the second Round, the Mo Adam show was in full effect. Adam appeared just a bit quicker than Watkins. This speed by Adam led to a brutal right that sent Watkins to the canvas. Watkins made it to his feet, but could not turn to face Referee Steve Daher in time. Mohamed Adam cornered by his trainer, Sugar Hill Steward, improves to (7-0) with five knockouts. Watkins falls to (5-3) in his professional boxing career.

Manuel Alfaro wins his pro-debut by a 1:26 2nd Round knockout over John Amerson. The crowd turned on Amerson for excessive holding of Alfaro. Capitalizing on a brief separation, Alfaro was able to score the knockout, dropping Amerson’s record to (0-5).

Featherweight Angel Walker-Villegas won his professional debut by 1st Round knockout over now (0-8) Antonio Gonazales. From Southwest Detroit Walker-Villegas looked comfortable in the ring with an experienced opponent.

The middleweight fight between Isiah Jones vs. Brian Jackson sparked the controversy of the night. A bizarre ruling by Referee Sam Williams gave Isiah Jones a knockout win. What appeared to be a late punch by Jones as Jackson was already on the ground. This led to Jackson’s not being able to continue the fight. Jones escaped with a favorable ruling by Sam Williams to improve to (2-0) with two knockouts. Jackson, who says he will contest the referee’s decision, falls to (0-5).

Winfred Harris used patience and skill to outclass Zamir Young in a 6 Round Jr. Middleweight bout. The first two Rounds had Harris controlling the tempo with Young as a sitting target. As the fight continued, Harris slowly stalked Young through the final round. The fight showcased Harris’ ability to throw body shots went to the judge’s score cards. All three judges scoring the fight in favor of Winfred (60-54, 60-54, 59-55). Harris improves to (7-0) while Young falls to (1-6-1).

Cruiserweight Taylor Duerr continued his splash into the Detroit boxing scene with a 1:21 1st Round knockout of Jovan Blakely. A brutal left body shot by Duerr put Blakely on the canvas with no chances of answering the referee’s count. Duerr improved to (2-0-1), as Blakely falls to (0-3).

The night opened with Janelson Bocachica Figueroa defeating Thomas Allen. After falling to the mat twice, Allen’s corner had seen enough and threw in the towel. Bocachica improves to (4-0) with three knockouts. Allen falls to (4-16).

“Showdown in Motown” was promoted by Greg Ahrens and matched by Carlos Llinas.